Champagne André Robert Blanc de Blancs Terre du Mesnil Brut Grand Cru 2013
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate gave this Mesnil beauty 93 points -- for good reason! It's absolutely delicious!
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Why We Love It...
Just south of Epernay, in the limestone hills of the Côte des Blancs, lies the sloping mosaic of plots that make up Le Mesnil. Robert's family takes the very best of four plots – including the revered Les Chétillons, alongside neighboring Les Vaucherots, Les Coullemets du Midi, and Les Finciarts – to forge this “Terre du Mesnil'' cuvée. The village of Le Mesnil sur Oger sits entirely upon east-facing slopes, thickly sheltered by forestland on the hills above – allowing chardonnay to slowly ripen fully, never sacrificing the elegant, high-toned aromatics or the piercing acidity for which these wines are so prized.
The fourth generation of the Robert’s family, Bertrand, still runs the show (with his daughter, Clare, joining him in 2013) carrying on the traditions of his great-grandfather Henri, who began farming the land just after the first World War. Bertrand has never known a life away from the chalky limestone hills of Le Mesnil – his first memories are centered around playing amongst the chardonnay vines and smelling the barrels in the family’s cellar – carved by hand from chalk by his forebears. There is something in these wines that links to the family’s history – as if you can taste a piece of their home, and their style is guided by their generations of careful farming and thoughtful assemblage – all in homage to this land that has shaped them as a voice of the soil itself.
Just pure, romantic stuff, to be certain… with a flavor profile to match! The aromas are studded with myriad stone fruits – galaxy peaches, golden apricots, white nectarines – plus gala apples, croissant dough, toasted pecans, and flinty, tumbled rocks. The mouthfeel is ample and packed with ripe fruit flavors to match the aromas – with a lemony zip of piquant acidity carrying through to the mineral-laden and delightfully chalky finish. Without question, this is one of the most fantastically opulent, richly pleasing, and vinous Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs anywhere! While it lasts, of course…
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